The conference that was attended by Minister of State for Social Inclusion Zoltán Kovács from the Ministry of Human Resources focused on the topic of the integrated education of disadvantaged children, including Roma children. Press release.

The Minister of State delivered a lecture in Bratislava and had a meeting with Plenipotentiary for the Romani Community Peter Pollak, the first member of the Slovak Parliament of Roma origin. Zoltán Kovács also met with Marian Salon, State Secretary of the Ministry of Interior and Stefan Chudoba, State Secretary of the Ministry of Education. The efforts and aspirations of the Hungarian Government were greatly appreciated in Bratislava, and Zoltán Kovács’s lecture attracted much attention.

Hungary, currently holding the Presidency of the Visegrád Four (Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Poland), pays particular attention to the issue of social inclusion in the region, and the meeting was therefore of the utmost significance. There is a substantial Roma population in both countries and there are a number of practical examples in the field of issues concerning inclusion and the creation of opportunities. The representatives of the two governments conducted an exchange on these issues, with special regard to integration in early childhood.

In his lecture, the Minister of State for Social Inclusion told his audience that the Hungarian Government assists the integration of young Roma people by creating an educational network that extends from nursery school all the way to university. In the Sure Start Children’s Centres, the development of disadvantaged children is assisted from a very early age on, in cooperation with the parents, the For the Road-MACIKA (Útravaló-MACIKA) scholarships and other equal opportunities programmes reach some 30 thousand children, while the Roma Boarding Schools functioning in higher education seek to train a Roma intelligentsia that will be responsible for building a better future.
(Ministry of Human Resources, State Secretariat for Social Inclusion)

(Ministry of Human Resources)